With all of the hype surrounding the rap and rock-fused genre, Korn’s latest release, Issues, is a step backward for the band in the direction of their now classic debut album. Here there are no gimmicks or special guests, just thick-as-hell grooves with heady ’80’s sounding intros and interludes. The patented down-tuned Korn sound is a given, but they have eliminated the extras that made their last effort, the multi-platinum Follow The Leader, a huge commercial success. The only downfall is the idea behind the cover artwork, which is the product of a contest given by Mtv. Still, the winners are pretty good, considering they’re fans of Mtv.
The intro leads into “Falling Away From Me”, the first single from Issues and surprisingly one of the best songs on the album. It’s not that “Got The Life” wasn’t great (gotta love Korn doing disco), but their taste in heaviness seems to have returned. “Trash” follows with the same broken down feel that lifelong Korn fans will appreciate much more than they will an Ice Cube cameo. “Beg For Me” debuted at Woodstock this past summer; it’s crushing reverb and double bass is as captivating on the album as it was live. “Wake Up” is as close to “Faget” or “Good God” as Korn will ever come, with a screaming chorus of “Wake the fuck up!” repeated until you’re screaming it along with them. “Hey Daddy” continues with the twisted childhood routine that made lead man Jon Davis a filthy rich entertainer. The album’s most moving track, vocally and in density, comes towards the end. “Somebody Someone” rises and falls through a layered rhythm, then explodes with a brutally heavy, pit-inducing riff that closes out the song. It’s clearly the heaviest moment on the disc.
The short segues pull together an album that shines above the rest of the genre’s releases this year, instead of blending in like so many others have. Shying away from the rapcore is probably the best thing they could have done. It’s still funky, and grooves in the crossover sense, but the dismissal of rap and an expansion in musical influences holds their integrity intact.
Kid Rock and Limp Bizkit may have risen to the top of the Mtv driven hip-hop/hardcore scene, but Korn has paved yet another path to travel. They’ve gone back to their roots with a raw hardcore rock album, though one that may not be as commercially successful as their last. At this point they really shouldn’t care; they’re still on top of their game after a year and half hiatus. Their real fans will truly appreciate this effort, as I surely do.
+ rick hinkson
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